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Squad Leader
The Squad Leader is a person that commands the squad/platoon and can use abilities from Squad Leader Certification tree. Certifications The Squad Leader Certification tree available under Social tab in main menu, and allows players of any faction to spend certifications to gain access to the following abilities/items: Note: every certification/ability granted by the Squad Leader tree requires you to be a squad leader. If you're not in a squad/not a leader, you won't have access to anything listed under Leadership. That includes the beacon, chat, and so on. Command Comm. Channel Voice: The Command Comm. Channel grants access to another voice channel; the Squad Leader Voice Chat (NUM 7 by default). This voice channel is only available to Current Platoon and/or Squad leader who have the Command Comm. Channel certification. A common misconception is that this channel is only for squad leaders in YOUR platoon. However, this channel is actually a continent-wide channel for leaders of squads and platoons. If you wish to speak to your squad leader privately, a custom voice channel can be used. Custom voice channel commands can be found by typing (/voice) and uses (NUM 6) by default. Chat: The Command Comm. Channel grants access to the chat commands /leader and /order. The command /leader is a communication channel available to all that have the certification, and is only seen by said leaders. The /order channel is a continent-wide broadcast available to Squad and Platoon leaders that is seen by all members of your faction on the continent that you are on, regardless of whether or not they have the Command Comm. certification. The /order command is limited to 256-character messages, and can only be used once every 3 minutes to prevent abuse. These commands are used in the following format: *'/leader' Are there any squad leaders near Hvar Tech plant? We could use some help capturing the nearby outposts. *'/order' We need reinforcements at Zurvan Amp Station, enemy forces have almost overrun the facility! Request Reinforcements The Request Reinforcements certification allows you to set Offensive and Defensive request markers on the map that will be seen by all members of your faction on the continent. These are used to help notify your faction of what locations require assistance in assaulting and defending. The markers will remain on the map for 5 minutes, after which they will disappear. Placing a marker begins a 5 minute cooldown before you can place another. Squad Objectives The Squad Objectives certification allows you to mark primary objectives for your squad. Moving your crosshair over the icon of a capturable objective and holding the Spot Enemy button (default Q) will reveal a ring that allows you to set a Primary Objective. This will highlight the objective icon with red arrows that will be seen by all members of your squad. Base capture points can be marked at any time they show on the UI. Generators and spawn outpost cap points require line-of-sight to be set as a squad objective. You can only have one objective 'marked' at a time, and no experience bonuses are given in relation to objective marking. There is no cooldown to this ability. Rally Points The Rally Point certifications allow you to place smoke markers by right clicking on the map. These will show as a smoke cloud of the color that you have chosen to all members of your faction in the area, and last for several minutes. Placing a smoke beacon begins a 5 minute cooldown before that specific color of smoke beacon can be placed again. Spawn Beacon The Spawn Beacon certification grants access to a spawn beacon that is automatically added to the last gear slot available when you become a squad leader. The spawn beacon is used by selecting it in the same manner as you would a weapon (by default it will be on one of the number keys 3-7, depending on your class and equipment, NB: After buying 1st level it may not work until you relog) and placed on the ground similar to placing an Ammo Box or mine. Upon placement it will shine a bright red/blue/purple beam into the sky, depending on your faction, and can be seen by everyone in the immediate area. The beacon must be placed outdoors with clear line of sight to the sky, and can be easily seen by enemies and destroyed within 3-5 shots of small-arms fire. If not destroyed or re-placed it will persist for 30 minutes. Once placed, you and all members of your squad will have the option to hotdrop onto the beacon by selecting it on the deployment screen. The cooldown between multiple uses of the beacon by the same player starts at 2m30s at Level 1, and comes down to 2m15s at Level 2. There can only be one spawn beacon active per squad at a time, and placing a beacon begins a 3-5 minute cooldown before you can place another. A single player has a cooldown of 5 minutes between placing and re-placing the beacon. Tactical Overlay Tactical Overlay tools allow squad leader to draw on the map. Submitted drawings will be visible to entire squad. Leadership 101: Your First Squad In a battlefield where hundreds of players fight over territory at any given time, tactics and organization decide who wins and loses. Planetside has always focused on teamwork over lone wolves, and ultimately it's the actions of individual squads that win battles and wars. Planetside 2 has streamlined the squad leading process, with intuitive UI and voice chat features that keep commanding fairly simple, but will still require teamwork and communication. Joining an Outfit will provide the easiest opportunities for reliable large-scale teamwork and coordination, but recruiting random players can prove to be just as effective. Whether you're leading a group of close friends, a ragtag group of random troops, or veteran members of your outfit, you'll need to understand the basics to get your squad in and out alive (and with the most certs). Setting a goal First thing's first, you need to make a plan for what you want your squad to accomplish. Take a few minutes to look at the map and look at where the action is, and begin thinking of the options available to you. For instance If your faction is losing territory to the enemy, you may want to consider having your squad: *Defend the frontline and help retake lost bases/outposts *Take a side route and capture enemy territory while the enemy is focused on the frontline : If your faction is on the offensive and pushing the frontline, you may want to consider having your squad: *Assist in the large battles by focusing on capturing outposts, destroying generators, etc *Split off from the main force and attack another area, dividing the defenders amongst several fronts Keep the initial plan fairly simple, because the battlefield can change at any given time, and you'll need to adapt. Transportation The next thing to consider is how you and your squad are going to get from place to place. The two main choices for an infantry squad will be the Galaxy transport or the Sunderer , each with its own pros and cons. : The Galaxy transport offers: *Fastest method of moving a squad from point A to B, no matter the terrain. * A relatively safe mode of transport, being one of the most heavily armored vehicles in the game. * Can provide close air support if outfitted to do so. : The Sunderer offers: * An arguably easier method of transportation, for those who aren't comfortable flying. * The AMS module allows it to be useful for your entire faction as well as your squad by acting as a mobile spawn point. * More easily attainable due to more ground vehicle terminals. The Galaxy will better suit squads that move quickly from objective to objective and storm bases, while the Sunderer will be better for large squads that plan on engaging in longer, prolonged battles and base sieges. Additionally, if you're leading a small squad, you'll probably want to use the Valkyrie, as long as it has no more than 6 active members The Valkyrie offers: * A lesser chance of being noticed by hostiles, making it ideal for recon * Grater agility, enough so that it can hold it's own against an ESF * Effectively has 5 gunners, as passengers (4 total,+ main gunner) can fire their weapons, including the HA's various rocket launchers. Recruiting a squad After the planning and preparation are done, it's time to get out there and make some friends. If you're opting to use the Galaxy as transportation, you can try enlisting people at your faction's warpgate and flying to the destination. If you're using the Sunderer, you may want to consider deploying to the front-line yourself and then gather squad-members and spawning the vehicle to save yourselves a long drive from the warpgate to the action. A large number of players tend to be on the quiet side, but will gladly tag along in a group for the extra experience. There isn't much to this part, as it just requires minor people skills. Using the tools at your disposal As a squad leader, you'll have several items and abilities that give you and your squad a tactical advantage over the enemy. Some suggested tips are: * Whether attacking or defending, placing Squad Way-points using the map is always a good way to help guide your squad to where they need to be. * Use smoke markers (Rally point certifications) to mark landing spots for aircraft or for your squad to regroup. * Use your spawn beacon to get your squad to places a Sunderer AMS can't, or use it when taking casualties on a Galaxy drop with no nearby re-spawn terminals. * If you're outnumbered/out-gunned, a combination of Offensive/Defensive Request markers (Request Reinforcements certification) along with /leader and /order chat explaining the situation can bring in some much needed reinforcements and support from your faction. * Keep your squad together and work as a team, and there are no obstacles that you can't overcome. Creating a Platoon A platoon is several squads combined into a group. There must be at least two squads, and a maximum of four. Creating a platoon can be done in a few ways: * From the Squad management interface (default P) you can use the "Invite to form Platoon" to invite another squad leader to join your platoon. * Using the command /platoon invitesquad . * You can drag and drop squadmember in the (empty) bravo Squad management interface A platoon leader has the added responsibility of not only having to command his/her squad, but also commanding the other squad leaders of the platoon. Useful commands Squad commands: *'/squad invite ' - Invites the player to join your squad. * /squad kick ' - Removes the player from the squad. * '/squad disband - Removes everyone from the squad, disbanding it. * /squad setowner ' - Makes the player the leader of the squad. * /squad promoteme - Sends a Yes/No notification to the squad leader requesting the player be promoted to squad lead. Platoon commands: * '/platoon invitesquad '- Adds the selected player's squad to your platoon. * '/platoon kicksquad ' - Removes the selected player's squad from your platoon. * '/platoon invitemember ''' - Invites the player the join the chosen squad in your platoon. */platoon setsquadowner ' - Makes the player the leader of that squad. *'/platoon setmembersquad ' - Places the platoon member into the chosen squad. *'/platoon setplatoonowner ''' - Makes the player the leader of the platoon. Media File:Forming a Public Platoon|Tipps, 2 form a "public platoon" Category:Mechanics Category:Social